The invention disclosed herein relates to a device for cutting underwater vegetation such as weeds by being dragged along the bottom of a body of water using a line pulled by a human being. The cutting device could be used on dry land but it is intended for cutting weeds near the shore of a pond, river or lake.
A perennial problem of property owners along a lake or river shore is removal of weeds which grow on the bottom of the body of water. In some communities which are proximate to rivers or lakes, property owners make contributions to purchasing, maintaining and operating power driven weed cutters. In most cases, however, it is up to the property owner to rid the water adjacent the shore of weeds which are unsightly and, even more importantly, present a hazard to boating, fishing and swimming near the shore. A variety of weed cutters have been devised for being dragged underwater by means of a rope which is attached to a moving boat or which is pulled by a person standing on the shore. One example is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 1,772, dated Sep. 5, 1840. This patent shows what is called a scythe comprised of two elongated blades which have corresponding ends bolted together to form a V-shaped configuration. A rigid handle or line is attached to the apex of the V and the device is made of metal heavy enough to sink it to the bottom of the body of water so it will supposedly cut weeds as it is dragged along. The leading edges of the blades are sharpened for enhancing the cutting action.
Another type of underwater weed cutter is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 2,961,817, dated Nov. 29, 1960. The cutter in this patent comprises a relatively thin flat semi-circular piece of metal whose inside or concave edge is sharpened. A plurality of tines extend through the flat piece of metal from above and below its top and bottom surfaces. There are eye-bolts at opposite ends of the semi-circular cutter to provide for attaching lines which facilitate dragging the device along the lake or river bed to shear the weeds.
Another type of underwater weed cutter is described in U.S. Pat. No. 2,864,225, dated Dec. 16, 1958. It comprises a triangularly shaped body having a hole in one of the apices of the triangle for engaging the body with a line. Two blade structures constituting long arms carrying corrugated devices serve as saws. A member similar to a keel on the bottom side of the triangular body stabilizes the body as it is dragged along the lake bed.
Among the problems associated with the known weed cutters described above is their cost resulting from the multiplicity of parts of which they are composed and from the several required manufacturing or assembly operations such as molding of parts, cutting and installing tines which bring about a raking action, drilling holes and grinding cutting edges.